Trevor Smith (footballer)
Encyclopedia
Trevor Smith was an English footballer, who played as a centre half
for Birmingham City
and the England national football team
.
, West Midlands
and attended Quarry Bank
Secondary Modern School
. In 1951 he captained the local schools' representative side, Brierley Hill, Sedgley and District, to their first final of the English Schools' F.A.
Trophy, in which they lost to Liverpool Schools 5–3 on aggregate. A feature of the first leg, according to the Brierley Hill local newspaper, was the "solid play of the two centre-halves, Parkes for Liverpool and Smith for the home team", while the match programme from the second leg described him thus:
When he left school he signed for Birmingham City
as an amateur
, and played for the team that won the European Youth Cup (now called Blue Stars/FIFA Youth Cup) the following year. He turned professional on reaching his 17th birthday in April 1953, and made his first-team debut for Birmingham, then in the Second Division
, six months later, scoring an own goal
in a 4–2 win at Derby
. Apart from interruptions due to injury or to National Service
obligations, he was a regular choice for the first team from then on.
Smith's career at Birmingham coincided with probably the best period in the club's history. Under the management of Arthur Turner
, they won promotion to the First Division
in 1954–55, reached the FA Cup Final
and their highest ever finishing position (sixth place) the following season, and then the FA Cup semifinal in 1957, only to lose to Manchester United
's "Busby Babes
". They went on to play on the losing side in two successive Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
finals,
under Smith's captaincy. The club's success during this period was built on a solid defence, comprising a first-choice selection of international players Gil Merrick
, Jeff Hall
, Ken Green
and Smith himself, together with wing-halves Len Boyd
and hard-man Roy Warhurst
.
Smith represented his country at schoolboy and youth levels, and won no fewer than 15 caps at under-23 level. He was selected to represent England B
against their West German counterparts when still only 18. He had all the attributes necessary for a top-class centre-half. Tall and powerfully built, he was good in the air and in the tackle and read the game well,
combining an uncompromising physical game with good technique.
When the great Billy Wright retired from international football, the 23-year-old Smith was chosen to take his place, making his England
debut against Wales
at Ninian Park
on 17 October 1959. A calf injury sustained early on which hampered his movement meant he failed to do himself justice, but he kept his place for the next match, against Sweden
later that month. England performed poorly overall against the Swedes, Smith and his defence failed to cope with Swedish forward Agne Simonsson
, and he was not chosen for his country again; Brian Clough
's England career was also restricted to these same two games.
By the early 1960s, Birmingham were past their best. The Cup Final team had dispersed, league form was poor, but the new League Cup
competition provided some relief. In 1963 they reached the final against local rivals Aston Villa
, who were hot favourites having won the league meeting two months earlier by four clear goals. However, under the captaincy of the inspirational Smith, Birmingham won the home leg by a comfortable 3–1 margin, and a goalless draw in the away leg gave them their first major trophy.
At the start of the 1964–65 season, Smith lost his place through injury, and when he recovered he moved to Walsall
of the Third Division
for a fee of £18,000. He was able to make only 13 appearances for the club before arthritis
forced his retirement in 1966 at the age of 29. Walsall were critical of Birmingham, believing they had knowingly sold them an unfit player.
After leaving the game Smith went into the licensed trade, first with a pub in Tamworth
, then as manager of off-licences in Birmingham and later in Dagenham
. He retired to Walton-on-the-Naze
in Essex
and died 18 months later of lung cancer
on 9 August 2003 at the age of 67.
Defender (association football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....
for Birmingham City
Birmingham City F.C.
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...
and the England national football team
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
.
Biography
Smith was born in Brierley HillBrierley Hill
Brierley Hill is a town and electoral ward of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, West Midlands, England. It is one of the larger Black Country towns with a population of 9,631 and is heavily industrialised, best known for glass and steel manufacturing, although the industry has declined...
, West Midlands
West Midlands
West Midlands may refer to:* West Midlands , a region in England* West Midlands , the metropolitan county in the West Midlands region* West Midlands conurbation, the large conurbation in the West Midlands region...
and attended Quarry Bank
Quarry Bank
Quarry Bank is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, West Midlands, England, which exists within the Brierley Hill DY5 postal district.Locally, the name is often pronounced, "Quarry Bonk"...
Secondary Modern School
Secondary modern school
A secondary modern school is a type of secondary school that existed in most of the United Kingdom from 1944 until the early 1970s, under the Tripartite System, and was designed for the majority of pupils - those who do not achieve scores in the top 25% of the eleven plus examination...
. In 1951 he captained the local schools' representative side, Brierley Hill, Sedgley and District, to their first final of the English Schools' F.A.
English Schools Football Association
The English Schools Football Association is the governing body of schools' football in England, and is responsible for the running and development of schools competitions and festivals for boys and girls at primary and secondary school age....
Trophy, in which they lost to Liverpool Schools 5–3 on aggregate. A feature of the first leg, according to the Brierley Hill local newspaper, was the "solid play of the two centre-halves, Parkes for Liverpool and Smith for the home team", while the match programme from the second leg described him thus:
When he left school he signed for Birmingham City
Birmingham City F.C.
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...
as an amateur
Amateur
An amateur is generally considered a person attached to a particular pursuit, study, or science, without pay and often without formal training....
, and played for the team that won the European Youth Cup (now called Blue Stars/FIFA Youth Cup) the following year. He turned professional on reaching his 17th birthday in April 1953, and made his first-team debut for Birmingham, then in the Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
, six months later, scoring an own goal
Own goal
An own net occurs in goal-scoring games when a player scores a goal that is registered against his or her own team. It is usually accidental, and may be a result of an attempt at defensive play that failed or was spoiled by opponents....
in a 4–2 win at Derby
Derby County F.C.
Derby County Football Club is an English football based in Derby. the club play in the Football League Championship and is notable as being one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888 and is, therefore, one of only ten clubs to have competed in every season of the English...
. Apart from interruptions due to injury or to National Service
National service
National service is a common name for mandatory government service programmes . The term became common British usage during and for some years following the Second World War. Many young people spent one or more years in such programmes...
obligations, he was a regular choice for the first team from then on.
Smith's career at Birmingham coincided with probably the best period in the club's history. Under the management of Arthur Turner
Arthur Turner (footballer born 1909)
Arthur Owen Turner was an English professional footballer and football manager. He played as a centre-half for Stoke City, Birmingham City and Southport...
, they won promotion to the First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
in 1954–55, reached the FA Cup Final
1956 FA Cup Final
The 1956 FA Cup Final was the final match of the 1955–56 staging of English football's primary cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, better known as the FA Cup. The showpiece event was contested between Manchester City and Birmingham City at Wembley Stadium in London on Saturday...
and their highest ever finishing position (sixth place) the following season, and then the FA Cup semifinal in 1957, only to lose to Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
's "Busby Babes
Busby Babes
The Busby Babes were a group of Manchester United players, recruited and trained by the club's chief scout Joe Armstrong and assistant manager Jimmy Murphy, who progressed from the club's youth team into the first team under the management of the eponymous Matt Busby.The Busby Babes were notable...
". They went on to play on the losing side in two successive Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. The competition was the idea of Swiss pools supremo Ernst Thommen, Ottorino Barassi from Italy, and the English Football Association general secretary Stanley Rous, all of whom later became senior officials...
finals,
under Smith's captaincy. The club's success during this period was built on a solid defence, comprising a first-choice selection of international players Gil Merrick
Gil Merrick
Gilbert Harold "Gil" Merrick , was an English footballer and football manager. Considered one of the best goalkeepers in the UK during the mid-1950s, Merrick was one in a long line of great Birmingham City keepers which included the likes of Johnny Schofield and Harry Hibbs...
, Jeff Hall
Jeff Hall (footballer)
Jeffrey James "Jeff" Hall was an English footballer who played as a right back for Birmingham City and England....
, Ken Green
Ken Green (footballer)
Kenneth "Ken" Green was an English footballer born in West Ham, London, who played as a full back. He played for Birmingham City from 1943 to 1959, making 443 appearances in all competitions and scoring 3 goals, and played in the 1956 FA Cup final which Birmingham lost to Manchester City 3-1...
and Smith himself, together with wing-halves Len Boyd
Len Boyd
Leonard Arthur Miller "Len" Boyd was an English professional footballer who played 333 games in the Football League in the 1940s and 1950s. After serving in the Royal Navy during the Second World War, Boyd signed for Second Division club Plymouth Argyle, where he spent two seasons playing as an...
and hard-man Roy Warhurst
Roy Warhurst
Roy Warhurst is an English former footballer who made more than 300 appearances in the Football League playing for Sheffield United, Birmingham City, Manchester City, Crewe Alexandra and Oldham Athletic. He played as a wing half....
.
Smith represented his country at schoolboy and youth levels, and won no fewer than 15 caps at under-23 level. He was selected to represent England B
England B national football team
England B is a secondary football team run occasionally as support for the England national football team. At times they have played other nations' full teams; they have also played matches against 'B' teams from other football associations...
against their West German counterparts when still only 18. He had all the attributes necessary for a top-class centre-half. Tall and powerfully built, he was good in the air and in the tackle and read the game well,
combining an uncompromising physical game with good technique.
When the great Billy Wright retired from international football, the 23-year-old Smith was chosen to take his place, making his England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
debut against Wales
Wales national football team
The Wales national football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales , the governing body for football in Wales, and the third oldest national football association in the world. The team have only qualified for a major international...
at Ninian Park
Ninian Park
Ninian Park was a football stadium in Leckwith, Cardiff, Wales. Until 2009, it was the home ground of Cardiff City F.C., who compete in the English Football League Championship...
on 17 October 1959. A calf injury sustained early on which hampered his movement meant he failed to do himself justice, but he kept his place for the next match, against Sweden
Sweden national football team
The Swedish national football team represents Sweden in association football and is controlled by the Swedish Football Association, the governing body for Football in Sweden. Sweden's home ground is Råsunda Stadium in Stockholms län and their head coach is Erik Hamrén. Sweden made their first...
later that month. England performed poorly overall against the Swedes, Smith and his defence failed to cope with Swedish forward Agne Simonsson
Agne Simonsson
Agne Simonsson is a former Swedish footballer. He played for the Sweden national football team, earning 51 caps and scoring 27 goals. He was a participant in the 1958 FIFA World Cup, scoring 4 goals, when Sweden reached the final on home soil, losing the game 5-2 to Brazil...
, and he was not chosen for his country again; Brian Clough
Brian Clough
Brian Howard Clough, OBE was an English footballer and football manager. He is most notable for his success with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. His achievement of winning back-to-back European Cups with Nottingham Forest, a traditionally moderate provincial English club, is considered to be...
's England career was also restricted to these same two games.
By the early 1960s, Birmingham were past their best. The Cup Final team had dispersed, league form was poor, but the new League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
competition provided some relief. In 1963 they reached the final against local rivals Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
, who were hot favourites having won the league meeting two months earlier by four clear goals. However, under the captaincy of the inspirational Smith, Birmingham won the home leg by a comfortable 3–1 margin, and a goalless draw in the away leg gave them their first major trophy.
At the start of the 1964–65 season, Smith lost his place through injury, and when he recovered he moved to Walsall
Walsall F.C.
Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...
of the Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
for a fee of £18,000. He was able to make only 13 appearances for the club before arthritis
Arthritis
Arthritis is a form of joint disorder that involves inflammation of one or more joints....
forced his retirement in 1966 at the age of 29. Walsall were critical of Birmingham, believing they had knowingly sold them an unfit player.
After leaving the game Smith went into the licensed trade, first with a pub in Tamworth
Tamworth
Tamworth is a town and local government district in Staffordshire, England, located north-east of Birmingham city centre and north-west of London. The town takes its name from the River Tame, which flows through the town, as does the River Anker...
, then as manager of off-licences in Birmingham and later in Dagenham
Dagenham
Dagenham is a large suburb in East London, forming the eastern part of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham and located east of Charing Cross. It was historically an agrarian village in the county of Essex and remained mostly undeveloped until 1921 when the London County Council began...
. He retired to Walton-on-the-Naze
Walton-on-the-Naze
Walton-on-the-Naze is a small town in Essex, England, on the North Sea coast in the Tendring district. It is north of Clacton and south of the port of Harwich. It abuts Frinton-on-Sea to the south, and is part of the parish of Frinton and Walton. It is a resort town, with a permanent population of...
in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
and died 18 months later of lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
on 9 August 2003 at the age of 67.
Honours
with Birmingham City- European Youth Cup winners: 1952
- Second DivisionFootball League Second DivisionFrom 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
champions: 1954–55 - FA CupFA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
finalist: 19561956 FA Cup FinalThe 1956 FA Cup Final was the final match of the 1955–56 staging of English football's primary cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, better known as the FA Cup. The showpiece event was contested between Manchester City and Birmingham City at Wembley Stadium in London on Saturday... - Inter-Cities Fairs CupInter-Cities Fairs CupThe Inter-Cities Fairs Cup was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. The competition was the idea of Swiss pools supremo Ernst Thommen, Ottorino Barassi from Italy, and the English Football Association general secretary Stanley Rous, all of whom later became senior officials...
finalist: 1958–60, 1960–61 - Football League CupFootball League CupThe Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
winner: 19631963 Football League Cup FinalThe 1963 Football League Cup Final, the third to be staged since the competition's inception, was contested between local rivals Birmingham City and Aston Villa over two legs. Aston Villa had won the inaugural competition in 1960–61, and had beaten Birmingham 4–0 in their most recent...
External links
- Profile at englandstats.com